How to make an affordable Vintage looking tray

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Get the full tutorial on how to make an affordable vintage looking tray. You’ll impress your guests when you get it out and they’ll never guess it came from the dollar store!

When I made this tray, we had just come back from a trip to Paris and a guess I was still in the “romantic- vintagey” mood of the city. I wanted a tray to put my breakfast things in the refrigerator and just take the tray out in the morning and put it back in right after (time saver!). If you’re like me, a white plate just can’t do the trick!

How to make the vintage looking tray

First, I started by gluing the papers and doilies on the plate with my favourite friend, Mod Podge!

I used a stamp and black archival ink to add texture (if you look closely, you can see it on the blue papers).

When it’s dry, I added teal paint to link it all together like this:

Next, I added brown ink with a tissue paper to give it a vintage look.

I added a whitewash (white paint mix with water) and used the mask you see at the top of the picture to make subtle designs. Can you see them?

(** a mask is the opposite of a stencil. If you want, you can use a doily as a mask!)

Finally, I added a final layer of Mod Podge to seal everything.

Image transfer

If there’s writing on it, the image needs to be printed in reverse as you can see in the above picture.

I cut the reverse image an applied a nice coat of Mod Podge where I wanted to place the image. Then, I pressed the image firmly on the Mod Podge. You have to carefully take out all the air from under (I like to use an old credit card and gently scrape the image).

And here comes the “patience” step

You have to let it completely dry (sight!). To be sure, I let it dried overnight. I know, it’s long, but I didn’t want to regret it! When it was dry, I started spraying water and then rubbed with my fingers.

Tip : I started to rub gently with the sponge and then used my fingers.

The image says “Patience” and that’s what it took! If you want to be sure you got all the white paper, let it dry a bit. If you see some white, apply more water and rub gently again with your fingers. It’s a long process but it’s worth it!

In the end, I found that the Mod Podge was too sticky and it’s not recommended to put food on it, so I ended up spraying a coat of “Low Odour Clear Matte” from Krylon on it.

I’ve now been using it for 5 years (can you believe that!) and it still looks good. I had jam spilled in it many times and it got washed plenty of time too. The paper is just starting to tear on one corner. It might be in need of another coat of Krylon!

That’s the beauty of a vintage looking thing, they still look good when they are a bit worn out!

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I help crafters create a beautiful and functional home with useful Cricut DIY projects. I'm always looking for new crafts to make! Follow me on my DIY adventures and reconnect with your creativity! I can't wait to help you craft a home you love!

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